Happy first day of fall! I don’t know about you, but the summer season has been over the top BUSY!! After dealing with a crazy work schedule for 4 months followed by Hurricane Irma, I find myself playing catch-up daily. While my social plate is busy overflowing, I still need to find food to put on my actual plate…and quickly.
It takes a little longer for fall to arrive in Florida, but we still love to participate in this much anticipated season – which is why most of us eat pumpkin spice everything beginning the first day of October. I think it is wishful thinking that if we sip on a hot autumn inspired latte, the cool winds will surely blow in soon. In any case, my table will be overflowing with some amazing fall recipes and pumpkin scented candles very soon just to make sure ;) Here are 20 must try meals to get your harvest season started…without spending all day in the kitchen:
1) Mediterranean Polenta Bowl with Goat Cheese and Toasted Pine Nuts by This Season’s Table
What I love about this: A bowl of olive oil roasted fall vegetables, with goat cheese swirled grits in less than 30 minutes? Im in! This hearty dish is full of flavor and nutrients to fill your bowl and your tummy just in time for fall.
2) Pork Chops with Apple-Sage Sauce by Food Meanderings
What I love about this: The combination of pork and apple in this dish is phenomenal! With a sauce that takes like 2 seconds to whip up, you can’t go wrong. Add a side of your favorite green veggies or sweet potatoes and you have a complete meal.
3) Parsnip and Apple Soup with Black Lentils and Vegetable Crisps by Lauren Caris Cooks
What I love about this: Any savory sweet combination is a huge win in my book. Plus, the play on textures with a creamy soup and hearty lentils topped crispy veggie chips…ummm, yum!! Parsnip and apples are such a great source of fiber and vitamins. Add the lentils into the mix and you have some added protein and iron for a complete meal. The lentils need to be precooked, so don’t forget to make them ahead of time, or start the cooking process right before you make the soup. Pressed on time? Check out these RED LENTILS for faster cooking.
4) The Harvest Salad: Greens, Couscous, Fall Fruit and Apple Vinaigrette by The Organic Kitchen
What I love about this: Linda, you had me at apple vinaigrette. Some days you have had heavy food all day and just want something a little lighter for dinner. This meal won’t weight you down but still packs a hearty flavor with the addition of couscous and a protein of your choice. I love that it contains so many different flavors of fall such as apples, roasted pecans, cranberries and apricots. As Linda put it, it really is “Fall in a bowl.”
5) Honey Lime Roasted Sheet Pan Salmon and Vegetables by Taste and See
What I love about this: Sheet pan dinners ARE THE BEST! I love the convenience of throwing everything on one baking sheet and letting the oven do the hard work. This meal highlights Bok Choy which is sometimes grown by farmers in late summer for nice tender little shoots to be harvested in the fall. It is a great source of vitamin K and potassium as well!
6) Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili by The Organic Kitchen
What I love about this: The first inkling of a fall breeze just screams “MAKE CHILI RIGHT NOW!!” What a better way to enjoy chili than with some delicious seasonal sweet potatoes and fiber packed black beans. Topped with avocado? Yes please!!
7) Healthy Pumpkin Pasta with Spinach and Mushrooms by Happy Kitchen Rocks
What I love about this: Fall is all about pumpkin, so it wouldn’t be a full list without an amazing recipe including that little orange fruit – yes, it’s technically a fruit! I am definitely about combining textures to please the pallet and this one has it all. This recipe uses fresh pumpkin but can be done in 15 min if you choose the canned variety.
8) Purple Potato Chorizo Burrito by Homemade Food Junkie
What I love about this: Purple potatoes have always intrigued me, which is great because they are loaded with nutrients. As Diane explains, the darker the fruit or vegetable (such as blueberries) the more antioxidants they contain. Potatoes are also an excellent source of potassium. Pair them with yummy chorizo and wrap it up like a taco – insert me jumping up and down with my hand raised high in the air – and you have one awesome 30 min meal.
9) Easy Black Bean Soup in Cumin-Dusted Bread Bowls by Two Healthy Kitchens
What I love about this: Can we just say ‘yes’ to all things served in a bread bowl? I definitely can. Especially if it is a healthier bread bowl stuffed with a delicious and nutritious black bean soup. This recipe is lightened up with chicken or turkey sausage and packed full of veggies. So good y’all!!
10) Autumn Lentil Salad with Chickpea Pancakes by The Stingy Vegan
What I love about this: This meal combines some of my favorite fall foods, such as lentils, sweet potatoes, pomagranates, and pears. The salad is cleverly placed on top of a chickpea pancake because, yes! Add a pancake to any recipe and you are winning, especially when it is made out of a healthy, gluten free chickpea flour. Want more? This recipe tells you exactly how much you will spend per serving.
11) Smothered Creamy Skillet Chicken by The Fit Blog
What I love about this: When I can get a low carb, high protein, low fat dish and it is full of flavor, sign me up! This skillet chicken is smothered in a creamy cashew based sauce and loaded with veggies. Plus, it’s all cooked in one pan, saving you clean up so there is more time to savor the deliciousness on your plate.
12) Pumpkin Ravioli Recipe and Butter Sage Sauce by Living Sweet Moments
What I love about this: You guys….you can have pumpkin stuffed ravioli in 30 minutes with this recipe. Seriously, I don’t think I need to sell it any more than that, but lets just talk about how pumpkin is packed full of fiber, beta carotene and another amazing amino acid called tryptophan which is a seratonin booster. When more seratonin is produced, it improves our mood. Literally, this dish will make you a happier person all around!
13) Gluten Free Creamy Broccoli Cheese Soup by This Season’s Table
What I love about this: Broccoli soup is one of my go to comfort foods. Most recipes are made with a roux, which is loaded with butter and flour. This variety uses cauliflower as a thickener, elminiating the need for any gluten and decreasing the amount of butter without compromising flavor. It also spolights leeks, a member of the garlic family that helps prevent heart disease.
14) Brussels Sprout and Bacon Pizza by Crumb Blog.
What I love about this: Brussels sprouts come into season around Sept and are such a versatile veggie, packed full of Vitamins A, C, iron, potassium and fiber. They are always great topped on Pizza and roasted. Especially when snuggling up next to crispy bacon. Ohhh yeahhhh.
15) Spicy Chicken and Sweet Potato Noodle Bowls by Domesticate Me
What I love about this: Spirilized anything is always a win, not only because noodles made out of colorful veggies are super cool, but they tend to cook a heck of alot faster than the whole or chopped variety. Don’t have a spiralizer? They are one of those super cheap kitchen gadgets that you will never regret purchasing and can find one HERE on Amazon. Sweet potatoes are amazing to use in this way because they don’t turn into mush when sauces are added, and are fantastic when topped with a fried egg. I’m seriously over here computing in my head how fast it will take me to get home so I can make this, like, now.
16) Crispy Chicken Thighs with Garlicky Kale by Pinch and Swirl
What I love about this: Some days you just want something fried [insert my massive Chik-Fil-A addiction] but you’d really rather avoid the side of guilt that comes with the aforementioned, probably bad, decision. This dish is perfect because it delivers that crispiness you so greatly desire with a nutrient dense side of garlic kale. There will be no self shaming after this one. You go ahead and enjoy yourself ;)
17) Pantry Pumpkin Bisque by Happy Healthy Mama
What I love about this: I was totally obsessed with the movie A Walk in the Clouds when I was young. Aside from it’s some interesting bad acting, it had a scene where pumpkin flower soup was served. There is this fondness in my heart for all pumpkin soup after that movie. It is one of those soups that smells amazing, coats your tummy and is hearty enough to be a meal on it’s own. I dare you to try and make it through the fall season without at least one bowl of pumpkin soup. Especially this recipe. It is soooo good you guys and can be done in 20 minutes!
18) Autumn Kale Salad with Warm Pumpkin Viniagrette by Veggie Inspired
What I love about this: 3 words – Warm Pumpkin Viniagrette. You really didn’t have to convince me any more, but the fact that it is ready to eat in 13 min is just an added bonus. Plus, I LOVE that there’s a nutritional benefit in every ingredient. As Jenn says, “You may be healthier just from looking at it!” I’m going to stare at it awhile longer just in case…
19) Smoky Chickpea and Farro Soup by I Heart Vegetables
What I love about this: Smoky flavors are always an amazing addition to fall dinner menus. Especially when it is packed full of healthy kale, chickpeas and whole grains. I literally add smoked paprika to everything short of ice cream, but even that is negotiable. This dish features farro, a grain know for it’s popularity back in Roman times that is similar to quinoa except it acts like rice and has MORE protein per serving. Farro is also packed with magnesium, iron and zinc which is soooo great for immunity during the start of cold and flu season.
20) Butternut Squash and Brussels Sprout Fried Rice by Domesticate Me
What I love about this: Some days you just crave Asian inspired dinner. Hands raised if you too live in the realm of mid-week-chinese-delivery-because-adulting-is-hard. This is an awesome fall version of fried rice that can be done quicker than delivery and will leave you feeling much better about your mid week food choices.
With much love from OUR tables to yours!
*This post may contain affiliate links which are no cost to you and help offset the expenses of running this blog. All products are pre-tested and approved by This Season’s Table. Thank you for your support!
Marissa says
Beautiful lineup! Thank you so much…
Tiffany says
Thank you!! I’m so glad you are part of this!! I am loving all the creativity from this group and am very honored to present it all in a fun roundup!
Jenn says
I LOVE Fall! Everything about it, but especially the food! :) What a great roundup. Thank you for including my Kale Salad. Sharing!
Tiffany says
This was so fun collaborating with you all! All the recipes look amazing and I’m excited to have a fun list of things to keep my kitchen busy this fall ;)
Melissa says
Fall is the best season for produce! Thanks so much for including my autumn lentil salad in your beautiful round-up!
Tiffany says
You are so welcome! I agree – fall produce is my favorite too! Each year I can’t wait for the start of the season just for the food lol. I am so glad you are a part of this roundup. Your lentils are amazing!